Once again it's my privilege to quench your thirst and lend an ear while our lovely Altaira is busy with RL distractions. I want to welcome and toast all of our Newbies who have wisely found their way to TORn and now to FIESTA FRIDAY where we share drinks and tales!!!So what will you have today?*cranks up jukebox* How 'bout some Dancing in the Streets with Bowie & Jagger?

I really need these new films to take me back to, and not re-introduce me to, that magical world.

Could you lend me your hands? Moving house a week Sunday, but the majority of it is going into storage this Sunday. So any help packing and moving would be much appreciated . Especially this pesky 200L fish tank!

That's going to take up my weekend, and the rest of next week. Hope everyone else has something fun planned!

I can still feel some exiciting news coming ... just in time for all the new users.

What about you gramma, do you have anything planned for the weekend and week ahead?

"Desperation, needing You; every last breath I scream for You. Shatter me into a million pieces, make me new. ... Break me, mold me, make me what You want me to be; I am Yours, for You to use, so take and replace me with You."Family Force 5.

"Under a light in Bethlehem, I was sifting through the sand; the saline burned my eyes, I was looking for Your hand. I gave up on myself, and left my pride disarmed; I cried out 'I'm alone!' and found myself in Your arms. 'Rest in Me, oh, My love; I have loved you before the world began. Rest in Me, oh, My love; you'll never wander too far to reach My hand.'"Showbread.

'Twas the week before the teachers returned, and all through the school All the staff was going crazy, trying to make the place look cool...

What a mess it is here now, with last-minute room changes and cleanings and supplies still coming in! Better make that a triple-caffein!

Up to my Dad's this weekend for his 90th birthday. My brother's up from Texas, and nephew and his family will join us for a birthday dinner in his honor. So I have to bake a cake tonight: zucchini chocolate cake, moist but not too sweet, the way Dad likes them! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

If I make it to September with my sanity intact, it will be a miracle.

After the Rapids game Saturday night, they're having a charity soccer match between Denver cops and Denver firefighters, and I'd love to stay and watch, but it will be 9:00 before it starts, and I don't know if I have that much energy.

I also need to order some more stuff for my bathroom, for when my sister's is finished. "BOTH [political] extremes are dangerous. But more dangerous are team fanboys who think all the extremists are on the OTHER side." (CNN reader comment)

It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

There, and there again! I hope it goes smoothly, and the fish survive! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

Do you have to oversee the installation of all the new fixtures? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

And here's something to help you shovel through the gruel. And also there to make your mouth drool. The things we suffer to get ready for school! *high five* Have a great time with your Dad and Family :D That cake sounds YUMMY! *joins in drool-session*

I really need these new films to take me back to, and not re-introduce me to, that magical world.

And I see you're spending the weekend with your Mom - have a wonderful time together! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

when I get back home. It's one my mom-in-law gave me years ago, and is great for using up excess zucchinis! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?" -Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

I lurk the fiesta thread every Friday, though! This week I'm celebrating a new life as a student. Had an interview for a Media course yesterday and got accepted, so really looking forward to that. I think my tutor is already sick of me talking about The Hobbit just from the interview

She's meeting a friend from Alaska there. I guess that was their idea of "meeting halfway."

I hope I don't have to do much overseeing of anything. We discussed the general design with the contractor and ordered all the stuff. The bathrooms are pretty small, so there isn't a lot of room to "change" anything. So it should just be a matter of putting new baths, toilets, sinks in where the old ones were and updating the tiles and mirrors and other decorative bits. "BOTH [political] extremes are dangerous. But more dangerous are team fanboys who think all the extremists are on the OTHER side." (CNN reader comment)

It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)

When do you start the course? And do you know if there are any pieces of coursework that you can weave Tolkien into? No doubt there will be plenty of oppurtunites!

I even tried it in my Atmospheric Science MSc degree. We had to choose a topic to write an essay on - the only requirement was that it was original and related to air pollution. I started off writing about film sets (concentrating on LOTR) and how they contributed to local air pollution. I couldn't make an essay out of it in the time given. I ended talking about Arctic Reindeer and moss ...